The Road to Abundant Life

As frustrated as I get at times with people who seem to kid themselves when they say they know what the problem is yet they do not work at fixing the problem, I get really excited when they learn the truth, tell themselves the truth and take ownership of the truth. These people are on the verge of greatness. I never understood how true it is that the “the truth will set you free” until I made my decision to take responsibility for my own health.

At 49 years of age, I had spent most of my life looking for the quick fix. Surely, there was a magic bullet out there that would allow me to eat whatever I wanted and to do whatever including doing nothing and still be fit, trim and healthy. Think about it, how many programs are out there that guarantee results with little effort. Eat what you want. No exercise needed. They run endless infomercials ad nauseam on late night cable channels. They parade endless amounts of “experts” assuring the suckers, I mean, audience that they have discovered the problem and for $39 a month for the next 100 years… The moment I took ownership is the moment I realized that magic bullets do not exist. I also discovered the answer was not complicated. Simple, but not easy. And definitely worth the effort required.

Here are some things that I learned in the initial three months of solving my problem.

There is only one expert I can trust with my health. That person is me. If I am not expert today then I have to become one. My doctor is an expert in his field but not necessarily an expert on me. He is limited in his knowledge of me. Depending on him would require me to compete with people who are more driven by greed and self interest than with truth. Honestly, if I had taken his advice I would be on 4 different drugs and insulin today. I would also be even more unhealthy than when I started this journey. He has been amazed at my success and very happy about it. Unfortunately, he thinks that I am the exception to the rule. I am the exception to most diabetics but not to those who take the journey that I have taken. I am not super human. I do not have stronger will power than anyone else. The only thing I have over the majority is the freedom that the truth gave me,

I had to make a decision. I decided to take the road less traveled. The road to reality. The road paved with principles. Principles such as:

A. Admit there are no short cuts. There are no short cuts, no magic bullets, no easy diet plan. Short term thinking is what got you here, long term thinking will get you out.

B. Win every battle. Win the next 3 days, the next 24 hours, win this moment. Decide that the taste of victory is greater than the taste of any dessert.

C. Practice zero tolerance. There is no room for compromise. Compromise is a slippery slope to failure. Failure is not an option. Therefore, what is so good to risk failure for?

D. Live a transparent life. Declare war and make sure every person in your circle of influence know the war you are waging and hold them accountable to holding you accountable. Rebuke those who affirm you when you compromise. I don’t need nice friends. I need friends who love me. Love me enough to be firm when I am weak. Tell me what I need to hear not what in my weakness want to hear.

E. Support is not what makes or breaks you. Support is important but cannot be the excuse for failure. Bottom line, if it is to be, it is all up to me. When I started walking I enjoyed having my good friend, David Rudolph, walk with me. Yet, what would happen if David was unavailable to walk? I still had to walk.

F. Seek wisdom not just knowledge. Wisdom is knowledge born from experience. It may appear that you are the only person on this journey but you are not the first pioneer. There are hundreds of people who have traveled before you. They love to share their wisdom. Find them and ask for advice! As a rule of thumb, if it’s mainstream, it’s suspect. Question everything, test everything. That certainly applies to any blogger who you have to pay to get the information or buy their product. There are many bloggers out there who share their experience out of devotion not profit. That does not mean that all those who have books or products to sell are bad, just question them before writing a check.

G. Reactions will vary. Many of your friends will think you are crazy, legalistic, or overly cautious in your commitment to reclaim your health. You may be but how does that compare with living a life of misery and dying a slow but premature death when you could have done something? Embrace the radical new you.

Tell yourself the truth

What are your excuses? Do you tell yourself truth or lies? Do you say to yourself:

“I have limitations”

“I am not responsible for my health”

“I am not not overweight/fat/obese”

“I am healthy”

“I am active”

“I eat just fine”

“I don’t eat that much”

“I can decide later”

“One more serving won’t make any difference”

If you speak these or any other lies to yourself you need to examine each statement and ask God to help you speak the truth to yourself. If you find yourself at that point where you know the truth and you know that basically everything you knew or were telling yourself was a lie, welcome to the road back from the cliff. Too many people find themselves at the edge of the cliff. They don’t take ownership of why they are there. They fear the cliff but yet dangle their feet over the edge as if that is the brave and safe thing to do. Wisdom tells you to turn and run as far from the cliff as possible. Not many people do that. Hence, the road less traveled.

The surprise is that you will enjoy the journey on the road to reality.

If I did this any one can. I think of the words of Jesus when He said, “I came that you would have life and have it more abundantly.”